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[Weirdsound]

"How long until we arrive at Mudcups?"

Don't answer any questions about what you know, but dodge in such a way as to eke information from the farmers themselves.

If one has a wife, mention "Ah, yes. A Beautiful woman. Shame, really." And then just smile, and hum a little ditty.

These guys aren't pontential allies so it is best we terrify them, or goad them into our cage where we can have an advantage with our somewhat smaller stature. We probably aren't as good at fighting so the environment being in our favor is as good as it gets.

Better idea. We trick them. Wait until night and try to convince the one staying up to guard you that your superior goblin perception (Which you don't likely have, but they don't know that) has detected a beast or night creature or something stalking the caravan. Lets put that lying skill to use!

Edit: If you have time before you reach your destination, spend a day or so observing the wagoner carefully. Try to figure out how to drive the wagon. That might be a skill we need.

[weenog]

"How long until we arrive at Mudcups?"

Don't answer any questions about what you know, but dodge in such a way as to eke information from the farmers themselves.

If one has a wife, mention "Ah, yes. A Beautiful woman. Shame, really." And then just smile, and hum a little ditty.

These guys aren't pontential allies so it is best we terrify them, or goad them into our cage where we can have an advantage with our somewhat smaller stature. We probably aren't as good at fighting so the environment being in our favor is as good as it gets.

Better idea. We trick them. Wait until night and try to convince the one staying up to guard you that your superior goblin perception (Which you don't likely have, but they don't know that) has detected a beast or night creature or something stalking the caravan. Lets put that lying skill to use!

Edit: If you have time before you reach your destination, spend a day or so observing the wagoner carefully. Try to figure out how to drive the wagon. That might be a skill we need.

Second the night creature ruse.  We were an administrator, we usually sent others to do our fighting for us.  No reason to stop now just because the others in this case are merely fanciful lies.

[Iituem]

Mudcups is three days away, so you enjoy the luxury of time.  You spend a day examining your captors, trying to assess their natures and observing the process of driving the wagon.  [Judge of Intent: 12+3(Skill) = 15] The wagoner appears to be a fairly stoic type, replying mono-syllabically to conversations with the hunters.  At one point he enthuses about a recent trip he made to Waterhills (by which you mean he talked for more than two sentences).  You get the feeling he is not used to dealing with people and deals with that by clamming up in the face of conversation.  He looks strong, but not fast.

The hunters appear to be brothers, one older by about three years and both in their mid-twenties.  They are fairly strong, agile characters and the younger hunter is quite good looking.  They talk fairly often, with the younger brother (Cal) initiating most conversations and the older brother (Nal) indulging him.  Nal seems to be the brains of the pair, as Cal is often asking him about their situation, how best to hand you over and how much they should hold out for when bargaining for you.  If anything, Cal seems a little naive.  Nal keeps close scrutiny over you, suspicious of your silence.  You sense a deep anger buried beneath his friendly exterior.

[Skill Training: 8] You watch the wagoner drive the cart.  It seems to be as simple as just whipping the horses every now and again and tugging on the reins where you want them to go.  You suspect there might be rather more to this, but you could always give that a go.

[Luck: 13] When they bed down for the night, Cal takes second shift after the wagoner.  You wait a little while before you speak up.

"Good evening, kind human."

Cal jumps back with fright and gives a little yelp.  He draws his boot knife and waves it at you, about to call for help -

"Please, I mean you no harm!  You have caught me, and I am yours."

[Persuader: 14+3(S) = 17]  The hunter holds his knife uncertainly for a moment, then looks at your cage.  He smirks and sheathes the knife again.  The others remain slumbering in their beds.

"Of course, goblin.  You're not getting out of that any time soon, hah!  Now, why do you have the, uh... in-sow-lens to speak to me, your master?"

You suppress a sigh.  "Forgive my insolence, master.  I simply wished to aid you and so prolong my miserable life a few days further.  You know that we goblins have far better sight at night than great humans?"  He shakes his head, but seems to believe you.  He should; your people really do have very good night vision.  "Then you would not have seen the night troll?"

[Luck: 16] Fortunately there aren't any night beasts out there and there don't seem to be any bogeymen waiting outside the protective light of the campfire.  There are, however, plenty of trees and rocks that seem more malicious than they really are in the moonless, cloudy night.

"Night troll?"  Cal reaches for his knife again, but halts himself.

"Why yes.  I thought you had simply been biding your time to strike, master.  I saw it yesterday, lurking in the bushes, and thought it inclined to keep away from the campfire, but today it creeps closer.  Look again, do you see it?"  You gesture vaguely in the direction of an ominous tree.

[Liar: 15+3(S)+2(Luck) = 20] Cal looks where you point and gasps.  He draws his knife again and waves it in the direction of the terrifying shadow in the dark.  Of course you can see the tree quite clearly but human perception is not so gifted.  "Stay there," he says without really thinking about the stupidity of that statement, "I'll wake the others!"

"No, there's no time!  Besides, you don't need to.  After all, wasn't it you who knocked me out?  Wasn't it you who proved himself the mighty warrior?"  You take a leap of faith and conclusion.  "And does your brother see that, or is he always pushing you down by trying to protect you?  Wouldn't this be a chance to prove your worth to him once and for all?  You don't need him looking over your shoulder.  You can do this!"

[Persuader: Natural 1] "No!  My brother has always protected me, he's never condescended.  How dare you try and turn me against him, you goblin filth!  Just because your kind has no sense of love.  Now shut up, I'll need help to defeat this monster - and then, maybe, we'll see about teaching you a lesson or two."

Cal spits at you once for good measure, then starts rousing the other two from their sleep.  What now?

Spoiler: Status (click to show/hide)

Vitality: 10 (Full health.)
Peckish
Status: Annoyed

Inventory: Ragged, formerly fine black clothing (the shirt on your back).

Expert Administrator
Proficient Historian
Proficient Law Scholar
Skilled Geographer
Competent Negotiator
Competent Persuader |
Competent Liar |
Competent Judge of Intent |
Adequate Leader
Novice Knife-Fighter
Dabbling Forager
Dabbling Pump Operator
Dabbling Wrestler

Languages: Perfect Goblin, Fluent Human, Broken Dwarven, Poor Elven

[Karnewarrior]

well, shit.

Well, we got a choice to make right now: Let them run off and try another lie, or tell him outright we were trying to trick him, apologize, and see if we can't earn any brownie points (or at least curiosity points) that way.

If we can't find a way to escape our best bet would be to try to befriend one of them. They'll be less likely to kill us if they like us. It looks like Nal has a grudge so he's unlikely to be our friend, but having him have some doubts about his preconceptions would be incredibly useful; the others would notice and probably think that they should keep us around a bit. Even if they think we mind controled him, we could tell them that it has to wear off anturally and if we die before its over it'll last forever.

We should also see about if we're likely to be executed or taken as a slave. We're useful and relatively frail, so we'd prefer slavery. More chance to use our silvertongue.

[Gamerboy4life]

well, shit.

Well, we got a choice to make right now: Let them run off and try another lie, or tell him outright we were trying to trick him, apologize, and see if we can't earn any brownie points (or at least curiosity points) that way.

If we can't find a way to escape our best bet would be to try to befriend one of them. They'll be less likely to kill us if they like us. It looks like Nal has a grudge so he's unlikely to be our friend, but having him have some doubts about his preconceptions would be incredibly useful; the others would notice and probably think that they should keep us around a bit. Even if they think we mind controled him, we could tell them that it has to wear off anturally and if we die before its over it'll last forever.

We should also see about if we're likely to be executed or taken as a slave. We're useful and relatively frail, so we'd prefer slavery. More chance to use our silvertongue.

Seconded.

[GreatWyrmGold]

I vote let them run and then escape. Somehow...

[Weirdsound]

Yeah. Let them run. Once they are gone we should be able to take our time and break out. Chew through what we would cut through with a knife.

[adwarf]

Yeah. Let them run. Once they are gone we should be able to take our time and break out. Chew through what we would cut through with a knife.

I support this.

[Weirdsound]

Yeah. If they come back thank them and say that it was avoiding them and heading for the wagon, and you were desperately trying to escape. Thank them profusely for returning when they did and saving your life.

[weenog]

Yeah. If they come back thank them and say that it was avoiding them and heading for the wagon, and you were desperately trying to escape. Thank them profusely for returning when they did and saving your life.

This.  But certainly try to squeeze our narrow nerdy body between the bars and get out beforehand, when they're not looking.  We can worry about slipping our wrist bonds after we're away from our captors.

[Karnewarrior]

Just so you know you guys are terrible liars. 

[Iituem]

Cal raises Nal and the wagoner.  The first snaps awake, the latter stirs sluggishly from his slumber.

"What's wrong, brother?" asks Nal.  "Is the gob giving you trouble?"

"Yeah, but that's not it.  Look!"  Cal points into the darkness.  Nal squints into the distance.

"What am I looking for here?"

"Night troll!"

"What?  Did the goblin-"

"No, I mean it!  I saw it out there myself, bugger was big as a tree, had about eight arms.  He's been following us since yesterday, I only just noticed.  Come on, we need to find him."

"Alright," says Nal, "but we should leave Jirn here to watch the gob."

"Wait!" you cry.  "What if he kill- I mean, don't you need every hand out there?"

[Persuasion: 20+3(S) = 23] Nal laughs at you, naked cruelty in his voice.  It reminds you of home.  "Oh yes, I'm sure Jirn would love to teach you a lesson or two.  But the gob's right, a troll will need all three of us.  Jirn, you take my knife and Cal and I will use our bows.  Stay close and keep your eyes peeled; the last thing we want is to get split up."

Cal and Jirn fall in behind Nal and the three of them leave the safety of the campfire in search of the troll Cal is absolutely certain he saw.  You watch until they are a fair distance away, then try the bars of your cage, seeing if you can just squeeze through.  [Stealth: 5] Unfortunately the bars are too tight for even your starvation-thinned frame to fit through; your head is nearly thin enough to fit through the gap, but you risk trapping it if you do.  [Biter: 14+0(Untrained) = 14] You start gnawing at one of the cords binding the cage together.  Your teeth are made for cutting and tearing rather than grinding, but after a few minutes you make some headway and loosen the bonds.  [Stealth: 3+2(Loose Cage) = 5] Still too tight for you to fit through.

[Luck: 7] You spot the trio returning to the camp, although they probably can't see what you are doing clearly from where they are.  You decide to risk a more bold move and start beating and tugging at the one loose bar.  [Wrestling: 17+0(S) = 17]  You wiggle the bar a few times then give it a heavy shove.  The bindings pop loose and the bar comes undone, giving you enough space to slip through.  There!  You scurry into the camp, [Stealth: 17+0(S) -2(Light) = 15] ducking behind the wagon and watching your captors.  They seem frustrated but unhurried as they return to the camp, probably having seen through your ruse.  They do not seem to have noticed your escape yet, but it is only a matter of time.

You could try and find something of use among their belongings, you could flee straight into the night, you could withdraw to a distance and plot revenge on them, or you could do something else entirely.  Whatever you do, it should be quick as they are almost returned.

Spoiler: Status (click to show/hide)

Vitality: 10 (Full health.)
Peckish
Status: Relieved, Wary

Inventory: Ragged, formerly fine black clothing (the shirt on your back).

Expert Administrator
Proficient Historian
Proficient Law Scholar
Skilled Geographer
Competent Negotiator
Competent Persuader |
Competent Liar |
Competent Judge of Intent |
Adequate Leader
Novice Knife-Fighter
Dabbling Forager
Dabbling Pump Operator
Dabbling Wrestler |
Dabbling Biter |
Dabbling Stealther |

Languages: Perfect Goblin, Fluent Human, Broken Dwarven, Poor Elven

[Karnewarrior]

It's probably best we retreat to the woodline until they fall back asleep. Give them an hour or two to get deep in it, then raid Jirns tent or some of the other supplies. Surely not everything is unpacked, the food for example wouldn't be in anyones tent, logically.

[Gamerboy4life]

It's probably best we retreat to the woodline until they fall back asleep. Give them an hour or two to get deep in it, then raid Jirns tent or some of the other supplies. Surely not everything is unpacked, the food for example wouldn't be in anyones tent, logically.

This.

Also, slit their necks. Dirty hoomins.

[GreatWyrmGold]

It's probably best we retreat to the woodline until they fall back asleep. Give them an hour or two to get deep in it, then raid Jirns tent or some of the other supplies. Surely not everything is unpacked, the food for example wouldn't be in anyones tent, logically.

+1